Research training scheme for dental professionals

The College has endorsed a scheme offering dental professionals certified training and experience in research.

The National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) Associate Principal Investigator Scheme is aimed at UK health and care professionals who would not normally have the opportunity to take part in clinical research in their day to day role, but who are interested in learning about it and willing to make a significant contribution to the conduct and delivery of a study for at least six months.

Participating practitioners work alongside the Principal Investigator (PI) of a relevant NIHR Portfolio study being carried out locally, at the same site, typically for 2-3 hours per week. Mentored by the PI, they also complete a checklist of study activities and an online learning pathway, and on successful completion of the scheme are issued a certificate confirming NIHR Associate Principal Investigator status.

Endorsement by the College has allowed the scheme to open to NIHR Portfolio studies in the institute’s Oral and Dental Specialty, and certificates issued to successful trainees will be endorsed by the College.

An introductory video is above, and details of how to become a trainee, or how to register a study for the scheme, can be found on the NIHR Associate PI Scheme website

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West Midlands members encouraged to get involved in research

The College would like to encourage research-interested colleagues based in the West Midlands to get involved with an active regional dental research network.

The West Midlands Dental Research Network, part of the National Institute for Health and Care Research’s Clinical Research Network, is looking for dental practices to join.

Getting involved with research is actively promoted by the College, and information about research processes can be found in our online introductory guide to research for primary dental care clinicians.

Yann Maidment, CGDent Research Lead and Kanwar Ratra, CGDent Council Member for the West Midlands, said:

“If you live or work in the region and are interested in research, have already thought about making your practice research-active or are considering involvement as a means of professional development, we encourage you to join the West Midlands Dental Research Network.”

Further details are below.

NIHR Clinical Research Network West Midlands Dental Research Network

Have you thought about becoming a research active dental practice?  We are here to offer you that opportunity.

Who Are We?

The Clinical Research Network West Midlands, part of the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). We are here to help provide advice, support and assistance to allow your dental practice to take part in high-quality dental research in the clinical setting where the care is provided.

The benefits for Dental Practices and personnel taking part in research:

  • Research Career Development
  • Contributing to NICE Evidence Base
  • Patients given opportunity of research involvement (per NHS Constitution)
  • Quality Mark for CQC Inspection
  • Staff Learning and Development with CPD opportunities
  • NIHR accredited certificate
  • Updates on research findings to contribute to policy and practice

Expressions of Interest:

We seek expressions of interest from forward-thinking dental practices who would like to join our Dental Research Network. This will provide the opportunity to be the first to find out about high profile dental research studies taking place in your area.

Joining the Dental Research Network does not commit you to taking part in a particular study and is free.

To express your interest please contact: Anesha Chauhan, the Clinical Research Practitioner coordinating the Dental Research Network in W Midlands. Email: [email protected] or by mobile: 07823 362148.

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New research reveals the missed opportunity of preventative oral care

World leading consumer health company Haleon, in conjunction with the College, has launched the ‘Dental Health Barometer’ to provide insights into the role of preventative oral healthcare in the UK.

Preventative care is defined as proactive dental care and advice that helps a patient to take action to maintain a healthy mouth, protecting against tooth decay, gum disease and more serious issues such as tooth loss and negative impacts on general health.

However, the survey of UK consumers and dental health professionals reveals that preventative oral care advice is not being offered consistently to patients. That’s despite a high incidence of tooth decay – with 70,000 people treated in UK emergency departments for the disease last year alone[1]. Just one third (34%) of oral health professionals said they always offer preventative care advice to patients, while one in four (25%) patients said they weren’t given preventative advice during their last dental appointment.

Over half (59%) of oral health professionals said that they are more likely to offer preventative advice for private patients than NHS patients, and over a third (37%) of NHS oral health professionals cited time constraints as the top reason for not being able to routinely offer preventative care advice, as opposed to just 15% of private oral health professionals. Though we know oral health professionals are working hard during a time of unprecedented pressure on the UK dental landscape, these figures come as little surprise given the widely reported ‘dental deserts’ where some areas of the UK have over 3,000 patients for every NHS dentist[2].

Additionally, oral health professionals differed on the preventative advice they would recommend to patients. While half (50%) said advice on additional oral hygiene products and brushing techniques were key, only 2 in 5 (41%) pointed to advice on diet as preventative care and just over a third (34%) would consider advice on caring for gums to be preventative advice.

Bas Vorsteveld, General Manager GBI, Haleon, said: “We know that oral health professionals are facing huge pressures, and we want to help support them to be able to provide better preventative advice – not just during routine dental appointments, but outside of appointments too. Our findings revealed preventative care advice is not always offered consistently, despite patients and dentists understanding its importance. We remain committed to addressing these issues and will look to develop new initiatives to support dental professionals.

These will form alongside our existing initiatives which include providing educational materials to healthcare professionals, continuing to innovate and provide therapeutic oral care for patient issues at home and through campaigns like Shine Bright which raises awareness in children of the prevention of oral health conditions.”

The importance of preventative care

Nearly half (49%) of the UK public think preventative care for oral health is very important with over half (54%) of consumers saying they would prefer to receive preventative care advice for their oral health from their dentist. Meanwhile, the majority (87%) of oral health professionals think that preventative action is beneficial and aim to provide it proactively.

Confusion over the availability of preventative care on the NHS

However, there is a lack of understanding across consumers and oral health professionals over whether preventative care is routinely available on the NHS. Almost half (48%) of consumers said preventative oral healthcare advice is offered on the NHS, and over a third (34%) were unsure. Oral health professionals were more aware, with 74% saying preventative oral healthcare advice is offered on the NHS. Once again, younger dentists are more aware that preventative care advice should be routinely available on the NHS.

The importance of preventative care has already been acknowledged by the Department of Health, through the roll out of the Delivering Better Oral Health toolkit, which was updated in 2021. This aims to provide best practice guidance on routine preventative care. It is encouraging that over a quarter (76%) of oral health professionals surveyed were aware of this toolkit. Younger dentists are more likely to be aware of it, with 82% aged 23-34 were aware compared to 58% of dental health professionals aged 45 – 54.

Dr. Kate Fabrikant, Medical Affairs Director, Northern Europe, Haleon, further supports this: “Working in the industry, we must find ways to support the availability and accessibility of preventative oral care for all. We will continue to support dental professionals in facilitating behavioural change towards better oral health in their patients, whilst improving health literacy of the patients to seek out and engage in preventative care, to help them practice better everyday self-care and avoid longer term dental issues.  There is a long road to travel to normalise healthy smiles in society, and it will take professionals, industry and policy makers coming together to get to this end goal.”

Consumers are open to preventative advice, but guidance is needed

The study found patients have a strong level of trust in advice given by their dentist. Where it is offered, 9 in 10 (88%) found the advice helpful. The study found that NHS patients, younger people and men were less likely to proactively ask for preventative care advice.

Dr Abhi Pal, President at the College of General Dentistry said: “We are committed to quality and standards of excellence in general practice dentistry – helping professionals to do the best for their patients. The research revealed some fascinating insights into the role that preventative care plays in the UK. It’s quite properly a mainstay of both private and NHS appointments, and we support any initiative that promotes prevention.”

Regional split

The Barometer also found that there were regional discrepancies between both patients and oral health professionals. It was found that:

  • Only 40% of consumer respondents from Greater London think that preventative care is very important for oral health compared to over half (55%) in Northern Ireland and South West England.
  • Respondents from Greater London also were less likely to have received advice, with only 37% having encountered preventative care advice compared to over half of respondents (55%) in the South East and nearly half (47%) in the North East.
  • Over half (55%) of respondents in Wales said thinking back to their most recent trip to an oral health professional, they received preventative care advice verbally from them,
    • compared to 50% of those in Scotland,
    • 48% of those in England,
    • And under 2 in 5 (37%) in Northern Ireland
  • Northern Ireland have recalled a particularly low level of preventative care during dentist visits – with only slightly over a third of respondents (37%) having received advise at their last appointment. Despite this, the respondents from the region were some of the most interested in learning about preventative advice (53%) compared to (36%) of East England, West Midlands and Yorkshire and Humber who were less interested.
  • The East of England saw the lowest level of detail from their oral health professional on preventative care advice, with only 30% feeling their dentist provided a lot of detail.

A poster depicting the key findings of the research is available to download here.


[1] https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2023/10/23/tooth-decay-patients-ae-nhs-dentist-shortage/

[2] https://www.libdems.org.uk/press/release/rise-in-dental-deserts-leaves-millions-struggling-to-get-nhs-dentist-appointment


In order to unlock insights from the study, the College and Haleon hosted a live webinar on 30 November 2023. A recording of the webinar is available to view below.

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Supporting patients with oral healthcare advice – can you help?

CGDent is working with Haleon (formerly GSK), to explore the opportunities for enhancing oral healthcare advice through dental practices, and supporting those members of the team on the front line for advising patients and your communities.

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We are inviting interest from practices and teams around the UK that might be interested in hosting a focus group for an evening, early in 2024. It’s a great chance to spotlight the valuable work of team members and for them to contribute to a national project.

We aim for our focus groups to comprise 6-9 people, drawn from the host practice and others in your local area, that you might like to invite.

Sessions are expected to run in the evening for 1.5-2 hours, facilitated by our team. We only require a comfortable space for ten people, in a relaxed setting such as a reception room. We will bring the biscuits!

If you would like to contribute, please get in touch at [email protected] by Friday 17 November 2023. We cannot promise to take up every opportunity, but look forward to joining practices up and down the UK in developing this project.

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The College and Haleon are hosting a live webinar on Tuesday 30 November at 2pm (GMT) where we will share insights from our recent study on preventative oral care and provide information about the full research programme – register your place.

Interviewees sought to help develop clinical risk assessment tool for GDPs

General dental practitioners are being sought to support research towards the development of a clinical risk assessment tool, and the College would like to encourage members to participate.

The research is part of the RADIANT project being conducted by a team at Peninsula Dental School at the University of Plymouth, and aims to create and develop a practical, evidenced-based restorative dental risk assessment tool informed by input from clinical practitioners, rather than the classical single speciality approach.

The concept behind the new index is to objectively assess the risk of dental complications for the patient’s whole mouth, focussing on improving the accuracy and consensus between clinicians regarding diagnostic and prognostic decision-making. It is hoped that the availability of a robust risk assessment tool will then help clinicians to develop treatment plans, and will provide a common reference point to improve risk communication between clinical dentists, primarily general dental practitioners, and their patients.

The Principal Investigator, Dr Mark-Steven Howe FCGDent, is a general dental practitioner in Broadway, Worcestershire. He would like to interview about 12 general dental practitioners of varying experience over the coming months in order to incorporate their views and opinions on how they make clinical decisions into the development of the new tool.

Interviews will take place virtually and should take only 30-60 minutes.

If you would like to participate, or to request further information, please send an email with the subject line ‘RADIANT’ to [email protected]

Maximising the potential of preventative oral care

Webinar, Thursday 30 November 2023, 2pm

Dental teams across the country face great challenges in providing accessible support for their patients and communities. The College of General Dentistry works to support the whole dental team in addressing these challenges, for the benefit of the nation’s oral health.

We have been working with Haleon, a global leader in consumer health with brands like Sensodyne or Corsodyl trusted by millions of patients, to conduct a survey to better understand the role preventative oral care plays in routine dental appointments.

The study, featuring insights from dental health professionals and patients, highlights the importance of preventative oral care, whilst also pointing to opportunities for its enhancement, supported by the clinical team, across the UK.

In order to unlock the findings of the survey, the College and Haleon hosted a live webinar on 30 November 2023. A recording of the webinar is available to view below.

Speakers:

  • Sarah Murray MBE, Board Member of the Faculty of Dental Hygiene and Therapy, College of General Dentistry
  • Bas Vorsteveld, Vice President and General Manager, GB&I, Haleon
  • Dr Kate Fabrikant, Medical Director, Northern Europe, Haleon

Membership of the College of General Dentistry is open to all registered dental professionals and dental students. Find out about our membership types and fees here

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Can you help us in the next phase of our research? We would like to hear from practices around the UK who are interested in hosting an evening focus group to explore preventative oral care advice given within practice – find out more.

Dental practices sought for pulpitis research

General dental practices are being sought for an NHS-funded research project, and the researchers are encouraging CGDent members to apply to participate.

The study into Pulpotomy or root canal treatment for the management of Irreversible Pulpitis in mature teeth (PIP study) compares the effectiveness of full pulpotomy and root canal treatment for irreversible pulpitis in permanent pre-molar and molar teeth.

Following a successful feasibility study which informed the final design of the PIP study, the researchers are now looking to recruit general dental practices in Scotland and England to each support the recruitment of approximately 11 participants and follow them up at one year. Training, support and remuneration are provided.

The project is being conducted by the Universities of Dundee, Aberdeen, Glasgow, Liverpool, Sheffield, King’s College London, plus NHS Education for Scotland and the Centre for Healthcare Randomised Trials and was commissioned by the NHS National Institute for Health Research Health Technology Assessment programme.

PIP study details

Patient participants will need to be at least 16 years old with symptoms indicative of irreversible pulpitis in a pre-molar or molar tooth with deep caries and/or a deep restoration. They must be seeking treatment at an NHS dental practice and receive a full pulpotomy.

Patients whose teeth have immature roots, clinical or radiographic signs of a necrotic pulp, insufficient tissue for a restoration or a poor prognosis (e.g. internal or external resorption) will not be eligible, likewise those with presence of a sinus, tenderness to percussion, buccal tenderness, pathological mobility or evidence off pathology on a periapical radiograph. All participating patients must be able to give informed consent.

Dentists taking part in the study will receive training, with fees and verifiable CPD provided, as well as remuneration covering set up costs, the cost of administration at the start and end of the study, service support cost and attendance of the end of study conference. You would continue to claim NHS fees and any charges for private treatment in the usual way.

Further information is available here. If you are interested in participating or have any questions, please email PIP‐[email protected] or complete the site initiation questionnaire.

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Meta-analyses and their appraisal

CGDent recorded webinar, Wednesday 7 December 2022

This lunch and learn webinar is the third in the College’s Research and Critical Appraisal of Evidence series of webinars.

This third CGDent webinar outlines the main elements and key stages of meta-analysis and how to appraise meta-analyses. We examine heterogeneity and its causes, consider the interpretation of a forest plot and look at appraisal checklists.

Speakers:

  • Derek Richards, Specialist in Dental Public Health, Director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Dentistry
  • Dr Mark-Steven Howe, General Dental Practitioner

Further webinars in this series:

GDC development outcomes: A C

CPD approx 1 hour

This webinar is hosted by the College of General Dentistry and powered by our CPD delivery partner, ProDental CPD – watch the recording below.

It was free to view live for all dental professionals, and College members also have free access to the recorded webinar and can claim CPD hours for free.  A £20 fee will apply for non-members who wish to claim CPD.

Membership of the College of General Dentistry is open to all registered dental professionals. Membership for dentists is available from £94, and for other registered dental professionals from £33. The full list of CGDent membership rates is at https://cgdent.uk/membership-fees/

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Statistics in the real world

CGDent recorded webinar, Wednesday 2 November 2022

This lunch and learn webinar is the second in the College’s Research and Critical Appraisal of Evidence series of webinars.

This second CGDent webinar provides an overview of key statistical terms needed to support critical appraisal. We explore statistical terms and their real-world interpretation and discuss the difference between statistically significant and clinically significant results.

Speakers:

  • Derek Richards, Specialist in Dental Public Health, Director of the Centre for Evidence-Based Dentistry
  • Dr Mark-Steven Howe, General Dental Practitioner

Further webinars in this series:

GDC learning outcomes: A C

CPD approx 1 hour

This webinar is hosted by the College of General Dentistry and powered by our CPD delivery partner, ProDental CPD – watch the recording below.

It was free to view live for all dental professionals, and College members also have free access to the recorded webinar and can claim CPD hours for free.  A £20 fee will apply for non-members who wish to claim CPD.

Membership of the College of General Dentistry is open to all registered dental professionals. Membership for dentists is available from £94, and for other registered dental professionals from £33. The full list of CGDent membership rates is at https://cgdent.uk/membership-fees/

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NIHR Career Progression Fellowships now available to GDPs

The NIHR School for Primary Care Research (SPCR) is currently inviting applications for their annual Primary Care Clinician Career Progression Fellowships, which this year are available to primary care clinicians practising in the UK, including general dental practitioners.

Aimed at primary care clinicians who want to start or continue a career in primary care research, the part-time, one-year Fellowships are an opportunity to further develop an academic portfolio in preparation to apply for and conduct a PhD.

The Fellowships can be undertaken at any one of the School’s nine member universities and applicants do not have to be employed by a member university when applying for the Fellowship. Details of each of the universities and their available research programmes can be found here.

In addition to the research opportunities available at each SPCR university, successful applicants will have access to a range of benefits offered by SPCR, including specialised training opportunities, networking, additional funding, mentoring and NIHR Academy membership.

Before applying for a Fellowship, applicants are advised to check that their proposed research project is compatible with the NIHR remit and are encouraged to contact their preferred university to discuss hosting their planned research.

Anyone wishing to apply can download the application form and find more information about the application process here.

Applications close on Monday 25 April 2022 (midnight), online interviews will be held on Thursday 9 June 2022 and the awards start from August 2022.


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